0803. The Art of Sacred Space. MWF 10-1050. (Fulfills Gen Ed Arts)
Martha Davis, Associate Professor
Since the beginning of civilization, man has devoted time, energy and materials to making images of, gifts for, and spaces for the sacred. We will investigate Roman interpretations of sacred spaces, the activities performed in them, and the works of art created to honor them, with a view to identifying, approaching and discussing aspects of the sacred. By learning about the Roman world, we will also begin to learn how to recognize and appreciate sacred spaces in the modern world and what these may represent and contain. During the course we will read a number of books and articles to help us think about the 'sacred invisible' and how persons and communities respond to it. In addition to much reading and discussion, students will have some writing, and will be expected to complete a final research or creative project.
0804. Race in the Ancient Mediterranean. MWF 3-350 (Gen Ed Race)
Eric Kondratieff, Visiting Assistant Professor.
An introduction to ancient thinking about race and ethnicity and to consider how ancient thinking remains current and influential today; how categories of race and ethnicity are presented in the literature and artistic works of Greece and Rome. Our case studies pay particular attention to such concepts as: notions of racial formation and racial origins; ancient theories of ethnic superiority; and linguistic, religious and cultural differentiation as a basis for ethnic differentiation. We will also examine ancient racism through the prism of a variety of social processes in antiquity: slavery, trade and colonization, migrations, imperialism, assimilation, native revolts, and genocide.
0811 Greek Theater and Society. MWF 10-1050. (Fulfills Gen Ed Arts) Caroline Stark, Visiting Assistant Professor
0911 Honors Greek Theater and Society. MWF 12-1250 (Fulfills Gen Ed Arts)Sydnor Roy, Visiting Assistant Professor. Through close readings of surviving texts, through viewings of modern productions of ancient theatrical works, and classroom recreations of Greek performative media, we will examine and experience ancient Greek drama both as a product of its own historical period and as a living art form. We will ask fundamental questions about the nature and purpose of theater in the ancient world: is this art just entertainment or does it engage and comment on the problems of Athens? How and why did this society invent theater in the Western world? We will also investigate the relationship of Greek drama to the modern world.
2102. The Romans. MWF 10-1050.
Karen Hersch, Associate Professor.
This interdisciplinary course examines who the ancient Romans were, what they did, how they lived and what they believed. Students are to read a sampling of works by Roman historians, poets, politicians, and novelists. We shall also study Roman religion, philosophy, and the physical and artistic culture of Rome, with a view to understanding the Romans' beliefs about themselves and their world. Classes, which include readings from primary and secondary sources, will focus on the many aspects of Roman daily life, history and society. This course is designed for both the beginner who seeks a broad background in ancient Roman civilization and for those who seek an introduction to this subject before pursuing more advanced work in Classics.
3296. Comparative Mythology. MWF 2-250. (Writing Itensive)
Martha Davis, Associate Professor.
Beginning from a base in the versions of creation and destruction found in the ancient Greco-Roman civilization, we will explore not only how various societies describe the origins of the universe and mankind, but also how they describe the end of the world and of human beings. Of particular importance in the course will be the idea of the creator as craftsman. The makers of mankind and his world range from sculptors like Zeus and Pygmalion, who created women, to musicians like the angels of the Silmarillion, who sang the world into being. Stories that record the destruction of mankind and the universe—or the gods themselves--vary also in the telling, and include such catastrophes as fire or ice or cosmic battle.
In addition to reports on individual research and reactions to materials presented in class or on the Blackboard site, there will be opportunity for students to produce their own stories of creation or destruction, incorporating motifs and methods encountered in the course materials, and supplementing these from their own imaginations.
3311. Ancient Greek Historians. MWF 11-1150.
Sydnor Roy, Visiting Assistant Professor.
This course will survey Greek history from the Stone Age until the death of Alexander the Great (323 BCE), but its core focus will be Greece in the Archaic and Classical Period (8th-4th centuries BCE). We will study in particular the works of Homer and two of the most important Greek historians: Herodotus and Thucydides. A major component of the course will be an examination of the historiographical methods of the latter two writers, but attention will also be paid to the other types of sources, such as comedies, tragedies, speeches, and various archaeological materials. (X-listed History 3311)
3596 Ancient City: Athens. TTh 930-1050.(Writing Itensive)
Alex Gottesman, Assistant Professor.
This course will survey Athens in the 5th and 4th centuries BCE, examining the accomplishments and failures of one of the few truly participatory democracies the world has known. In addition to studying the history of the city as it gained and lost an empire, we will explore its arts (including theater, philosophy, and architecture) and the everyday life of its denizens.